


Be There

by chaoticamanda



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Angst, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Family Feels, Gen, gate stone ex machina, one of the twins thinks the other is dead, the other escapes to scanlan
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-20
Updated: 2017-05-20
Packaged: 2018-11-02 23:41:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,303
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10955169
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chaoticamanda/pseuds/chaoticamanda
Summary: With one hand, she reaches for her earring and cries, “I’ma-alive!Alive…”Vex’s vision darkens, and she hopes that she was at least able to put the flames out before she falls unconscious. As her head drops to the floor, she hears footsteps rushing closer. She’s delirious, and maybe that’s why the soft whimper of, “Scanlan?” escapes her before she falls to blackness.





	Be There

They’re running, quite literally, for their lives. They had expected a fight, but not the lava trap that had initiated as soon as the druid and her elementals had fallen. They’re only slightly faster than the lava chasing them back the way came in, through a series of subterranean rooms and tunnels. Percy is leading the charge, Tary holding an unconscious Pike, Keyleth frantically trying to use the little energy she has left to halt the lava, Grog and the twins bringing up the rear. It almost feels like old times to Vex, but she doesn’t have time to dwell on the thought when the molten rock is bubbling and hissing behind her.

They’re so close to the tunnel that will take them back to the surface. Vex feels her heart thump against her chest as she sees Percy run through the final doorway that leads to the tunnel, then Tary with Pike, then Grog and Vax. One by one they’re all safe, until only she remains. Her brother’s boots are still giving him that extra speed, and her injuries are slowing her enough that there’s a big enough gap between them for a thick stone door to come crashing down in front of her. It knocks her off balance, and she crashes to the ground, hissing in pain as a gash on her side is pressed into the dirt. Most of her body throbs in protest when she scrambles to her feet, and she realizes just how close to unconsciousness she is as the world blurs for a moment.

The thick slab of stone, at least six inches thick, has no handle or lever, just a six by six viewport made of some kind of thick glass in the center of it. “Wait!” She screeches after her friends, aware of the heat at her back, the thick, sloppy sound of lava approaching, “I can’t get the door open!”

Vax’s face appears in the window, eyes wide and panicked, “Vex!” She hears a slam against the stone, but nothing happens, “What’s going on?”

“The—The stone just dropped!” She says frantically, running her fingers along the slab, trying to find some sort of mechanism to make it move. “I can’t—It won’t open!”

Vax is blinking at her through the glass, trying to think of a solution. He looks over his shoulder and shouts, “Grog! Lift this, please, hurry!” The desperation in his voice makes it shake, makes it a little breathless, and she feels her heart clench. Something behind her begins to sizzle as the lava seeps into the far end of the room. She doesn’t have much time.

“Yeah, okay,” Grog pushes Vax out of the way, crouching down, scrambling to find purchase under the stone. Vax is watching him try, chest heaving, and Vex’s feels her stomach drop when Grog grunts in frustration. “It’s—I can’t get it to move!” He sounds so frustrated, and her throat begins to feel thick. She doesn’t want to die—not here, not now. But there doesn’t seem to be a way out of this.

Tears are burning behind her eyes as she tries to keep them at bay. She doesn’t want Vax to see, doesn’t want him to watch her die, to know that she’s going to suffer. There is a grinding sound behind her, and a loud gurgling as something is regurgitated and suddenly the lava is flowing faster and thicker.

Grog rises to peek through the glass, his brows drawn as he tells her, “I can’t lift it. I-I’m sorry.”

Vex nods, a few tears traitorously slipping down her cheeks as she presses herself close to the door, “It’s okay, Grog,” her voice is shaky, fearful, “You tried.”

“Get out of the way!” Vax snarls, shoving Grog and squeezing up to the door, “Vex, back up, I’ll use Whisper—“

“No,” she cuts him off, pressing her hand to the glass. She can only see parts of him through her fingers, but it’s enough to see the shock, the confusion on his face, “There’s no use in both of us being trapped in here.” She has to take a shaky breath, though she’s not sure if it’s from the sharp pain of her injuries or the fear coiling around her heart. There will be no bringing her back this time.

“Vex?” Vax puts his own hand on the glass, only a little bigger than hers. He must know that she’s going to die here, but he asks anyway.

“You have to go,” she says tearfully, trying to fight the rising lump in her throat, “You have to go, Vax.”

He blinks at her, pain twisting his lips into a bewildered frown. He doesn’t answer her, determination dripping from his face as he clenches his jaw and rears back, slamming the butt of his dagger against the glass. It doesn’t even rattle.

A sob chokes her, and she shakes her head, “I love you, brother. And I’m so—so _proud_ of you. Don’t…never forget that, alright?”

“Vex,” he chokes, pressing his whole body against the stone as he pounds on it fruitlessly, _“Vex’ahlia.”_

“Vax,” she whispers, pressing her forehead to the glass. The tears are warm against her cheeks, but nothing close to the rising heat against her back. She thinks back to when they were kids, back when they still lived with their mother, when they would make up stories as a distraction from their aching stomachs. None of their stories had ever ended like this—she’d never dreamed of being a savior, a Baroness or a Grand Mistress, someone who held so much power. “Please, go, for me. I don’t—you can’t watch this.”

“I’m _won’t_ leave you,” his voice is hoarse, and there are tears streaking down his own dirty face. “Don’t go, not without me…”

“You have to l-let me g-go,” she chokes, chest heaving as she pushes the words out, doing her best to sound steady. There isn’t much that she can hide from him, but she hopes that he won’t see how terrified she is.

“I could never,” the words tumble from his mouth as he tries to blink away his tears, face scrunching with the effort of keeping it together, “I won’t. You’re my heart,” the words are thick with emotion.

“I’ll always be there,” she murmurs even though it’s cliché, because she just wants this part of her death to be okay. Vex inhales, wincing at the sharp pain in her chest, and calls out, “Grog!”

His head appears just next to Vax’s, who glances between them with confusion. She looks into his eyes, thinking of how far he’s come, how important his friendship has been, and she swallows, “Take him, Grog. Get out of here. Please, for me.”

“No!” Vax protests, but Grog just watches her.

There are times when she thinks he’s smarter than he lets on. “Vex,” he searches her face, “Are you sure?”

“I am,” she nods, trying for one last watery smile, “Thank you, darling. For everything.”

He hesitates, but then he nods, “You’re family, Vex.”

She can’t hold back the sob that claws it’s way out of her throat, a hand flying up to her mouth. Vax is shaking his head, but he’s never been strong, especially not against Grog. The goliath slings the half-elf over his shoulder easily, looking back at her one last time before he turns and begins to jog up the tunnel. Vax is snarling, and he looks like a feral animal as he stabs his dagger into Grog’s back, but Grog barely falters. “Vex!” He shouts as she loses sight of them, tearing a new gash in her heart. He sounds like a child calling out for their parent.  

She drops to her knees, her breath escaping her in short sobs as she cries, “I love you,” she says over the earring, to everyone and no one, “I’m sorry.”

Vex hopes that her necklace will survive the lava somehow, that somewhere down the line someone will find Trinket, that someone will take care of him. The lava begins to lick at her feet, her boots catching flame. It begins to burn, but it’s not enough to knock her unconscious.

She tries to scoot as close to the door as she can, but the Raven Queen is finally calling to collect her debt. Vex wishes she could have seen Scanlan, at least once. She wonders if he will know about her death, if he’ll care. Someone will have to find him first, or perhaps, the news of Vox Machina losing a member will spread.

Maybe he’ll finally return. At least her death can mean something in that regard, however trivial. Scanlan will know how to find them, and besides, he’s got the—

Vex gasps, fumbling for the gate stone she’d forgotten about. It’s a last-ditch effort, and it might not work, and she might be dead by the time it takes her wherever the other one is. Her calf is burning, stinging, _melting,_ and she’s screaming as she clutches the stone, closing her eyes. There’s a bright light, a brilliant heat behind her eyelids, but it could be just from the lava.

She wrenches her eyes open against the pain when she feels the weight of the stone slab disappear. She has just enough focus to register that she’s in some room with wooden floors and walls before she realizes that her leg is still aflame, even if it’s not submerged in lava. Her screams mix with sobs as she tries to put it out, to end the searing pain while she still can. With one hand, she reaches for her earring and cries, “I’m _a-alive!_ Alive…”

Vex’s vision darkens, and she hopes that she was at least able to put the flames out before she falls unconscious. As her head drops to the floor, she hears footsteps rushing closer. She’s delirious, and maybe that’s why the soft whimper of, “Scanlan?” escapes her before she falls to blackness.

 

When Vax’s eyes flutter open, he is faced with the faces of Vox Machina circling around above him. He’s about to ask what’s going on, where Vex is, but then he remembers. It feels like there is a gaping hole in his chest, except it’s worse than that. It feels like his chest is rotting, caving in and crumbling, or perhaps it was always rotten, but he’d never felt it with her around.

His sister.

His twin.

His heart.

His Vex.

His stomach churns as he thinks of her, ignoring all the faces cautiously staring down at him. When they were younger, she’d worked twice as hard as he ever did at their lessons, at pleasing their father, at trying to be diplomatic rather than violent. It was more than a sweet girl like her should’ve ever had to do, especially when it changed nothing. They’d been looked down on, judged, and he knew it hurt her, but at least they had each other.

They’d always had each other.

Now half of him has been ripped away, leaving him stripped and bleeding and raw. Vax’s face is stiff from the tears that dried on his face, and he scrubs at the skin as he asks softly, “What happened?”

Keyleth kneels down next to his head, her hands hovering for a moment before one drops to stroke his hair, “You attacked Grog. He knocked you out.”

Vax takes a deep breath, but it doesn’t feel like he really takes it in. He finds Grog’s face above him and grits, “You should have killed me.”

“Vax…” Keyleth’s exhales sharply, but he just swallows the lump in his throat.

“Your sister wouldn’t—“ Percy starts, his voice soft and a little rough himself.

“Don’t tell me about my sister,” Vax snarls, shooting up, ignoring the dizziness that almost forces him back down. Tary takes a step back, but no one else moves.

The only sound between them all is their deep breaths, and for a moment Vax misses Scanlan, misses the loudness, the distraction he could always offer. The silence presses down on him, reminds me that he will not always have Vex to fill it with anymore. He will never see her grow old, never be an uncle to her children, never see her be an aunt to his. His face crumples as tears overwhelm him, and he buries his face in his hands. He misses her, oh gods, he misses her.

“What...” Tary clears his throat, “uh, what do we do now?” There are clear tracks down his face too, eyes still red around the rim.

“We honor her memory,” Pike says firmly, her hand clutching her holy symbol, “We need to have a—something.” There is no body to bury. All they have left of her is memory and whatever was left in her house.

“Keyleth,” Percy says suddenly, starting toward her. The hand she had in Vax’s hair has slid to his back, over the scar she burned into him.

“What?” she blinks at him, nose and eyes red, as she looks away from Vax.

“Give me that scrying ball,” he says sharply, the way he gets when he has an idea he’s afraid will slip from his mind if he doesn’t do it immediately, “Please.”

“For what?” she asks softly, looking sadly at him.

“I just—we need to know for sure,” Percy clenches his jaw, “We need to check.”

Keyleth looks like she wants to argue, but she purses her lips and unpacks it, handing it over. Percy takes it with both hands, closing his eyes and focusing. The others watch him silently, grief making Grog twitchy and Pike mouthing a prayer and Tary’s hand’s shaking. Vax doesn’t care—he can’t. That part of him was taken with her.

 

Vex’s rise to consciousness is rapid, and she shoots up, a sob or a scream still stuck in her throat. She’s sore, for sure, but none of those searing or sharp spikes of pain is present. She blinks around at her surroundings, a little dizzy. For a moment, she’s sure that her mind is playing a trick on her.

“So,” Scanlan watches her from a few feet away, arms crossed, “that happened.”

“S-Scanlan?” Her mouth drops open, and she can’t stop herself from blurting, “Are you real?”

He falters at that, composure slipping for just a moment. He scoffs, “Of course I’m real.”

Vex has spent the last year thinking of him, of how he looks, how he’s doing. She’s imagined a reunion too many times to count—some are happy and some are angry. This isn’t really either. Relief is spreading through her chest, but there is also a cautiousness. He doesn’t seem all that please to see her. “You look well,” she tries, but it sounds too awkward, and she tacks on a “darling” at the end.

Scanlan shrugs, “You’ve certainly looked better.”

“Did I…” she glances down at her leg. Her pants are charred and burned, and she can see angry, scarred skin where the fabric was disintegrated. “Did I die?”

Scanlan loosens a little at that, his voice soft when he speaks, “No, no. You were just unconscious.”

“Oh…” she picks at her armor, “Good. That’s good.”

The silence that stretches between them is awkward and filled with tension. She doesn’t know what to say. If he wanted to come back to them, he would have. She doesn’t want to ask, doesn’t want to hear all the ways his life with them pales in comparison to his new one. She can’t trust him anymore—maybe she never could.

After a few minutes of silence, Vex finally speaks, trying to slowly climb to her feet, “I’ll get out of your hair then. I’m…I’m sorry for, um, dropping in on you.”

She hobbles toward the door, her legs stiff, but Scanlan says quickly, “You don’t have to. Leave, I mean. You can stay a while if you need to.”

“Oh,” she pauses, unsure, but then she nods, “If you’re sure.”

He looks up at her, and her heart swells with all the memories of missing him. “I don’t hate you,” he answers, glancing away from her but leading her through the door.

The words mean so much more than he can imagine.

Scanlan leads her to a small kitchen area, where he directs her to sit at the round table. “Is this your house?” she asks, a little shocked.

“Sort of,” he answers, “We’re renting it while we stay in town. Testing some roots, I guess.”

The answer surprises her, especially when he’s got a giant mansion at his disposal, but she doesn’t press, afraid to break the tenuous mood. “Where are we?” she asks instead.

“Just outside of Westruun,” Scanlan replies, digging around the cupboards for something. “Kaylie likes the city.”

Vex just nods, her heart clenching at the mention of his daughter. She wonders how her father would have reacted to her death, if at all. Scanlan coughs, “Where, uh, where were you?”

She lets her fingers doodle absently on the surface of the table, “Near Vasselheim. Things went south after a fight…” Because it’s Scanlan, because there was a time when she could talk to him, when he wanted to know, she murmurs, “I got trapped on the way out. I made—I had to have Grog carry Vax out so he wouldn’t watch…watch me die.”

Scanlan turns back to her, abandoning his search, and his face is almost unreadable, but she can see sorrow in the shadows of his face, “Well, you’re not dead.”

If she doesn’t say it now, then she never will, “I was thinking of you. If you would know—if you would care that I…” she trails off, a tickle at the back of her throat. “That’s what made me remember the gate stone…I wasn’t sure if you still had it, but I had to try.”

Scanlan’s brows draw together and his lips curl in almost a sneer, “Of course I would care. That’s…I don’t _hate_ you all.”

The words wrap around her throat, constricting it even though they offer comfort, “Okay,” she nods, “Alright.” After a beat of silence, she takes a deep breath, “Scanlan, you know—“

They are interrupted by sound bursting in their ears, “Vex! Vex, can you hear us?” It’s Tary’s voice over the earring, but then there’s more.

“Vex! Where are you?” That’s Keyleth, calling out.

“All you have to do is make one sound, dear. That’s all we need.” There’s Percy’s smooth voice.

“Veeeex!” Grog shouts.

“We’re coming, Vex!” Pike says, positive as ever.

There’s a softer, more broken voice that murmurs, “Stubby, please…”

Scanlan is staring at her with wide eyes, his face pale. It hurts her heart to see the fear around the edges of his eyes, so she offers him an out, “I can take both gate stones, if you want. We won’t…we won’t bother you.”

For a few moments, his expression is raw and exposed. She can see the apprehension, the hurt, the longing, the confusion. But when he speaks, his voice is firm, “No. No, I’ll keep it.”

“Are you sure, darling?” Vex asks, because she doesn’t want it to be like last time.

Scanlan nods, but then he swallows and murmurs, “I’m sorry.”

She doesn’t know what he’s apologizing for—leaving, the things he said, or not coming back—but it doesn’t matter. She rises from the table, putting a hand to her earring, “I’m here. I’m okay. I’ll meet you guys in a moment.”

She pauses at the front door, turning to look back at her old friend. He’s watching her go with something in his eyes she can’t decipher, doesn’t want to. “I forgive you,” she says, and walks away, into the arms of her family.

**Author's Note:**

> i know i can't seem to stop using the gate stone and bringing scanlan back to vox machina. i just miss him yknow. anyways, there will be a second chapter to the pregnancy fic, but this came into my head and i had to write it first.


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